Police raid Bangkok mansion in Japanese scam bust

BANGKOK, Sept 18 (TNA) - Thai authorities have raided a luxury mansion in Bangkok’s Bang Bon district used as an operational base by an international call center syndicate targeting tens of thousands of Japanese citizens, officials said on Friday.

Police searched the two-story European-style mansion—rented for 900,000 baht ($27,000) per month—following an informant's tip regarding suspicious foreign nationals at the property.

On the upper floor, officers discovered partitioned office spaces where Japanese nationals operated phone scams using Japanese-language scripts, laptops, 27 mobile phones, two-way radios, and pocket Wi-Fi routers. Investigators also seized Japanese police uniforms, shoulder patches, and counterfeit law enforcement IDs used during video calls to deceive victims into transferring funds under the guise of financial verification.

Lower-level searches revealed a lavish entertainment area featuring a poker table, karaoke setup, and a quantity of ketamine with drug paraphernalia and digital scales.

Police arrested members of the ring, which was structured with Japanese nationals deceiving victims, Taiwanese members managing technical infrastructure, and a Chinese mastermind directing operations.

Four suspects were detained at Bang Bon Police Station on drug possession charges, while the remaining suspects were transferred to the Immigration Detention Center pending charges including criminal association, racketeering, money laundering, and participation in transnational organized crime.

Authorities noted the discreet cell operated on a smaller scale compared to major regional cybercrime hubs in neighboring countries. Thai police are coordinating intelligence with Japanese law enforcement to facilitate formal complaints, noting that no Thai victims have been identified. -819 (TNA)